WASTEWATER TREATMENT

East and West Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Treatment Plants, City of Atlanta, Georgia

Under a US EPA and State Consent Decree, the City of Atlanta was required to upgrade the existing 20 mgd East Combined Sewage Treatment Facility and to construct an 85 mgd West Combined Sewage Treatment Facility to provide high-rate treatment of combined sewage to remove inorganic and organic material and to provide disinfection prior to discharging to tributaries of the South River and Chattahoochee River. This project included engineering design and construction administration services for the East CSO Treatment Plant located at the Intrenchment Creek Water Resources Center (WRC), and the new West CSO Treatment Plant and Sludge Pumping System at the RM Clayton WRC.

Our project team was awarded a 2006 Honor Award for Engineering Excellence by the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) Georgia branch in February 2006, for meeting all regulatory Consent Decree milestone dates (over 10 milestones) and designing exceptional facilities that met the City’s budget requirements.

Tasks included:

• Design and construction administration of a sludge pumping system, which included nine 150 gallons per minute (gpm) pumps and 1,400 lineal feet of high density polyethylene pipe routed through an existing casement and under an active railroad.
• Design of drum screening facilities, grit removal systems, filtration systems to remove suspended organic and inorganic material, ultraviolet disinfection systems, sludge and backwash handling and settling process units, ancillary systems including chemical storage and feed systems, plant water and air supplies, odor control for screening facilities, de-gritting and solids handling systems, as well as building and site development.

Cardozo Engineering provided:
• Engineering: pilot facility operation, planning, route analysis, site investigations and hydraulic analysis, QA/QC review, preparation of piping and instrumentation diagrams and process flow diagram, development of process description and control philosophy, calculation of solids mass balance and preparation of design reports, engineering drawings, specifications and construction cost estimates.
• Project Coordination: planning, preparation of project schedules, tracking of schedules and budget, tracking of milestones and deadlines, preparation of monthly status reports and attendance to periodic meetings, as well as coordination with utilities and municipalities.
• Construction Administration: site inspections, shop drawing reviews, preparation of responses to Requests for Information (RFIs), review of claim and change order submittals and review of as built drawings.

R.M. Clayton Water Reclamation Facility Upgrades, City of Atlanta, Georgia

This project included the evaluation, rehabilitation and upgrade of the 122 mgd treatment facility’s infrastructure and operations to improve treatment facility performance and to ensure consistent compliance with the City’s NPDES discharge permit. Services included project management, engineering design and planning, field investigation, interviews and workshops with operation and maintenance plant personnel, reviewing as-built conditions (drawings, equipment lists, O&M  manuals), performing equipment and processes condition assessments, preparing technical memoranda, plans and specifications, coordinating multi-discipline engineering team, preparing Erosion & Sedimentation Control Plans and Land Disturbance Permit, obtaining regulatory agency approval and providing utility coordination, construction cost estimating and scheduling. Root causes of recurring problems were identified and plans were developed and implemented to provide for long term solutions.

Rehabilitation projects included:
• Abandonment of the existing headworks facility
• Primary Chemical Feed Facility Upgrade and Injection Optimization
• New Primary Area Electrical Building
• Replacement of Primary Scum Pumping System
• Replacement of Secondary Scum Pumping System
• Primary Effluent Channel Improvements
• Primary Sludge Pump Improvements
• Primary Odor Control Improvements
• Abandonment of Chlorine Building:
• Primary Bypass Flow Meter Upgrade
• Anaerobic jet mixing system for two BNR reactors
• Improvements to Aeration Basin
• Mixed Liquor Valve Replacement
• Water Recycle Pipeline Installation under existing railroad

Miami-Dade County’s Biosolids Master Plan, Miami, FL

This project includes the evaluation of Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department’s (MDWASD) wastewater and water treatment facilities and operations, and preparation of a county-wide master plan to address biosolids treatment and disposal over a 20 year planning horizon. Project objectives included: a) Investigating specific biosolids management issues at each WWTP; b) Evaluating the cost and benefits of increasing the level of treatment at all biosolids processing facilities to meet Class AA standards; and c) Developing biosolids treatment alternatives taking into account costs and regulations, as well as environmental and public acceptance factors.

Cardozo Engineering’s tasks included:
• Conducting a Digester Gas Utilization Facility and Energy Management Study.
• Conducting a condition assessment of WWTP equipment.
• Conducting sampling and analysis of digester gas.
• Determining biosolids existing and projected quantities and characteristics
• Evaluating use of Sludge Energy Source at the County’s Waste-to Energy Plant.
• Preparing a Biosolids Master Plan Report.
• Analyzing local, state and federal regulations and trends across the US regarding treatment and final utilization of biosolids.
• Providing regulatory agency and utility coordination.

Detailed tasks included:
• Reviewing current and proposed biosolids regulations which may impact MDWASD’s biosolids treatment and disposal alternatives. CE staff conducted meetings with federal, state and regional agencies to promote involvement in Miami-Dade’s master plan development and to obtain regulatory buy-in and guidance; reviewed, evaluated and identified regulations that may impact future biosolids treatment and disposal, and prepared a technical memorandum.
• Projecting wastewater loadings and biosolids production.  CE staff reviewed population and flow projections, analyzed six years of operations data for the North District, Central Disctrict and South District WWTPs, and reviewed the Peak Flow Study as well as other reports to estimate likely waste sludge and biosolids production for future growth scenarios.
• Collecting and evaluating available plant data from the three WWTPs and identifying planned process changes which will impact biosolids production (e.g., High Level Disinfection)
• Meeting with potential utility partners who may utilize MDWASD's biosolids treatment and disposal facilities to obtain and document information on their existing and proposed future biosolids production data. These partners included: the North Key Largo Utility Corporation, the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority, the Everglades National Park and the City of Homestead.
• Conducting an analysis of biosolids quality, reviewing biosolids quality characteristics, estimating future biosolids quality taking into account expected quantities, effects of water treatment plant solids, septage, unit processes and industrial contributions, and preparing a technical memorandum.
• Evaluating effects of WTP solids on existing biosolids facilities operations and quality and quantity of final biosolids currently produced, and determining if the WTP solids can be processed in MDWASD’s CDWWTP as a back-up alternative without limiting handling and treatment of biosolids facilities.

Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department - South District Wastewater Treatment Plant Rehabilitation and Upgrade, Miami-Dade County, Florida: A five (5) year program to rehabilitate and upgrade the treatment plant.

Cardozo Engineering’s tasks included:
• Design of Headworks 3 Grit Chamber
• Hydraulic Model and Design of Improvements to the Plant Non-Potable Water System Network
• Design of Headworks 3 Process Drain Lift Station

Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department - Central District Wastewater Treatment Plant Rehabilitation and Upgrade, Miami-DadeCounty, Florida: A five (5) year program to rehabilitate and upgrade the treatment plant.

Cardozo Engineering’s tasks included:
• Design of two (2) 200,000 gallons Fuel Storage Facilities for two new Electrical Distribution Buildings. Includes DEF, Lube Oil and Waste Oil Storage and the associated Ancillary Equipment Building. It provides full spill containment and Contact Stormwater treatment.